Ari's Friend
by 123cosmo4
Summary: Ari learns the loves and losses of friendship. Cosmo here is a lonely author without reviews who has been waiting AGES for one! Help me out, guys! 18wanda thinks it's great!
1. Chapter 1

Ari's Friend

Chapter One- A Small Difference

After a lot of reckoning, the School finally lost track of where the bird kids were for now. They searched everywhere and couldn't find them. It was very typical to run away from danger for them. Now they had to track them down again and, of course, send some flying erasers to go eliminate them.

For now, Ari was free with nothing to do. The School didn't need him for anything so he decided to go outside. And do what exactly? Playing outside was something you did with friends, something you did to have fun and not feel lonely. Ari imagined himself lots of times playing with a friend. They could catch Frisbees and play tag or play hide and seek in the woods outside. They could read each other stories in the sunlight and tell each other secrets. Ari had no one to play with. He even asked a few other erasers to play a game and they just laughed in his face. He didn't really approve of that and came outside alone. He just wondered around and pretended to have a friend like Max. As weird as it sounded, he wanted her to be his best friend. They could play lots of games together and be the best of friends. Max could see the best in him if she looked for it.

After wondering almost to the woods, Ari found a football on the ground. With curiosity, he picked it up and threw it. He mindlessly chased it and then threw it back the other way. He glanced at the little building on the horizon that was the School like it was a crime to be doing this. No one was watching so he kept playing. The more he wanted a friend, the more furry he got until he held the football in fuzzy brown paws. This was so ridiculous and after thought, he wondered what motive brought him into doing this time-wasting nonsense. He could be eliminating bird kids right now, not playing a depressing game of football. Touchdown? Yeah, right. There was no one to stop him anyway. Ari was about to head back to the School when he almost stepped on something furry on the ground. Something little and white was crawling across the ground. A caterpillar. He wanted to step on it to show how powerful he was, but something kept him from doing that. It was crawling through the grass. Ari got down to its level, laying on the ground and watching it. It paid no attention to his wolf figure and was not afraid. It just kept going. Hesitantly, he held out a paw and blocked its way. The caterpillar stopped for a second and then crawled on. It lifted its head mindlessly and started up his fingers. Ari was charmed. This little caterpillar was not afraid. It came right to him like a true friend. This was a start. He felt very happy around this little worm and couldn't go back to the School and forget about it.

Wait a minute. A name! This little pet needed a name. He tried to think of a name the caterpillar would like.

"Your name can be Ari too," he decided. "Ari Junior. AJ. Is that a good name?"

The caterpillar paid no attention and continued searching for food. Ari was going to take the caterpillar back to the School for a tour of his home. This new friend needed to know all about him so it seemed like a good idea. He also needed to find a box to keep it in. The School had plenty of those. He picked some grass and put it in his pocket for AJ. Then they headed back to the School.

"This is where I live," Ari pointed out. "It may not be the best place, but its home. Here, let's go inside."

Ari gave AJ a little tour of the School, showing it the main rooms. Then he went in the storage room to find a container for AJ. He searched every one and tried to find a perfect one. He ended up finding a bug box. What were the odds? It was perfect. He opened the lid and put AJ and the grass inside. That would do for now. The sun was setting outside and it was bed time. Ari carried AJ down the hallway to his room.

"We are going to have lots of fun," he promised. "We can have a slumber party. That will be lots and lots of fun."

Ari blinked open his eyes and stretched. He was in a great mood and that made waking up easy. He decided to check on AJ.

"AJ," he whispered. "Are you awake?"

Ari prodded the cage and looked inside. AJ wasn't there. The caterpillar probably woke up early and was already up. He left the door to the cage open in case it wanted out. He rolled out of bed and searched for AJ.

"Come on out, friend… AJ? AJ?"

Ari got no response. He expected AJ to crawl right to him happily, but nothing happened. He started to get concerned and threw up his covers frantically to find the missing worm. He army crawled on the floor and tried to check AJ's perspective.

Things just happened to get worse than that. The door to his room opened and three fellow erasers were standing there. They got these queer expression when they saw their leader crawling on the floor.

"AJ," he called again and peeked under the bed.

"What are you doing?" one of them said with amusement. "Wow."

Ari clenched his hand together and could barely feel his nails getting sharper. He said nothing and continued looking. The erasers infiltrated his room. When he got up, one of them was holding AJ's home. All three of them were gathered. They looked humored.

"Look at this," one of them taunted. "Ari has a pet bug."

The other two burst out laughing at the sight of the box. Ari could feel a deep anger burning deep inside of him and could feel that working its way _outside_ too. He had to calm down though for the sake of his beloved AJ.

"Can you help me find AJ?" he pleaded. His eyes were like those of an innocent puppy than of a vicious wolf. "He ran away."

"You here that, Ari's friend ran away," growled the other eraser. "How touching. Anyway, the whitecoats want us to drill some tests. Come on."

"No," Ari refused. "I'm not coming. Not without AJ."

"It's just a stupid bug," the other eraser pointed out and shrugged. "They won't be happy if you don't show up. I should get some popcorn and watch your drama. You should just SEE how pathetic you look right now."

"Get out," Ari snarled, looking completely like an eraser by now.

"I see you want to find your little pet without our help." The other eraser turned wolf-like too and their fur was spiking up. "I didn't want to help anyway."

"Get OUT!!!"

Ari couldn't resist and, before long, the room was filled with a whirlwind of growling and snarling. Ari attacked the other eraser, relieving all of his anger. The other two stood back and watched with interest, wondering who would be the winner. Ari was on top and he bit down as hard as he could into the other eraser's throat. The taste of blood drove him wild and we wanted to kill this eraser. The other eraser lashed out at his face with clawed paws and they scraped through the left side. Ari yelped with pain and jumped back, clutching his bleeding eye. The other eraser took advantage of that weakness and lunged at him, pulling him down by the shoulder. The other eraser was much bigger in size and threw Ari to the ground without a problem. Ari felt like he got hit by a truck and squirmed frantically, unable to get away. The fight froze when Jeb was walking by and witnessed everything.

"Erasers!" he called sharply. "Lab unit. Now!"

The three morphed erasers abandoned Ari and headed for the lab unit. They passed by Jeb warily with flattened ears and they tensed up in case of a sudden attack. Ari peeled himself off the floor and prepared to follow them when Jeb blocked his way. Ari hoped to see affection and concern in his eyes, but no; just an expressionless and curious gaze.

"We have already gone through this before," Jeb said with disappointment. "Don't start fights with other erasers. You need to save your strength to fight the real enemy. You need to attack the avian hybrids."

Ari nodded.

"We have an experiment that needs to be done," Jeb explained. "We found out a way that will enable you to get them with ease. You can be just like them. Come to the lab unit with us."

That was it. Then Jeb was gone just like that leaving Ari to stare at an empty doorway. Ari at least wanted to be yelled at. At least that would show that Jeb cared somewhat instead of just abandoning him like this.


	2. Chapter 2 Avian Ari

Chapter Two- Avian Ari

Ari waited until Jeb left before getting emotional. He buried himself under his covers like a mole and just waited, trying not to cry. Of course that didn't work. What was he thinking? He knew having a friend was too good to be true. He deserved on so much and then AJ just deserted him like this. It was so depressing that he forgot all about going to the lab unit and just loathed his life.

All of a sudden Ari felt something tickling his hand and came out from under the covers. To his surprise, AJ crawled on to it. He was overjoyed to see the little caterpillar and held AJ close thinking about how this was too good to be true.

"You came back, AJ. I thought you left me."

Now that AJ was back, Ari's happiness returned. He put AJ back in the box and shut the lid this time just in case. It was pure luck it came back. He couldn't let those other stupid erasers find it. He stored AJ under his bed for safe keeping and then decided to head for the lab unit. Becoming like the bird kids… What on earth did Jeb mean by that? Lab Unit wasn't a very promising word though…

Ari freaked out when he saw exactly what was going on in the lab unit. It was crawling with whitecoats and they were all gathered around one of the erasers that was laying on a table. Ari approached with caution. No one tried to stop him so he went to the edge of the table and stared down. The eraser was laying very still except that its limbs were moving. It was halfway trying to morph, but it didn't seem to have any idea what it was doing. It was lost, staring at nothing and its limbs were paddling the air like it was trying to swim. Ari could hear it whining and growling while it moved and that shocked him. He reached out a hand and prodded its head. It blinked, but didn't move when he touched it.

One of the whitecoats motioned him to step back and he did. A few more were carrying forth a giant white freezer box. Ari had seen these before. They carried appendages of about any animal. They opened the box and pulled out a giant set of grayish black wings. They looked similar to those on the avian hybrids, but much bigger. What on earth were they doing? He watched them set the wings on the table with the eraser and then pull out a HUGE knife. He watched intently as it came closer to the eraser's back when someone grabbed him by the shoulder. He whirled around suddenly, prepared to attack, but didn't when he saw it was only Jeb. He was feeling insecure and unsafe.

"What are you doing?" he demanded.

He tried to sneak another peak at the surgery going on behind him, but Jeb pulled him back.

"Ari, it appears things are changing," Jeb explained and pulled Ari closer. "Think of how much easier it would be to attack your target if erasers had wings. You could be a natural killer this way."

"We get wings now," Ari confirmed unsurely. "We can be just like the bird kids."

"Of course. It won't hurt a bit."

"but what's wrong with that eraser over there?"

"Analeptics, that's all," Jeb said assuringly. "Basically like a deep sleep."

That seemed like a great idea. Ari was a little freaked out by it at first, but then he realized that this transformation would make him just like the flying freaks. The bird kids had friends so maybe that meant he could get them too. He could soar through the skies and drop on them like hawks. They wouldn't stand a chance.

"Okay," Ari agreed. "Let's do it."

Ari figured he didn't have a choice anyway, but cooperating made life a little easier. Jeb escorted him to a table where he was abandoned in a swarm of whitecoats. He watched them uneasily as they prepared a needle. It was full of who knows what and Ari accepted it with dignity. After the shot, he felt very strange. He felt fine at first. They wanted him to lay on the table so he did so and just waited. They loomed over him, waiting. After about a minute his head was very cloudy and he couldn't think straight. He had almost no idea of what he was doing or what was going on. He rose and swung off the table. The whitecoats tried to put him back, but he pushed them aside easily and walked around. After a few steps he stumbled and grabbed on the wall for support. Seeing was getting hard and his limbs were so heavy he could barely move them. In only a few seconds he collapsed to the ground. He could no longer see and could feel the whitecoats putting him back on the table. Mindlessly, he paddled the air like he was swimming for no good reason and had no idea what was going on. He could just barely feel a stinging sensation as he was getting wings. Those bird kids really had it coming now.

_Ouch. Ouch. Ouch. Ow. Ow. Ouch. Ouch._

That was the only thought in Ari's head as the medicine wore off. For about two minutes he just said that word in his head to pass the time and then finally his vision and thoughts were clearing up. He was sprawled out over the table with is arms dangling over the edge. He felt a sharp painful sensation on his back and he wanted to clutch it so it would stop. When he rolled around and tried to touch that spot, he saw a giant pair of blackish gray wings sprouting right out from his back. He stroked them and felt their smooth feathers. He wasn't sure how to move them. Like magic, he just tried and they moved a little bit, flapping lightly. Unlike the avian hrybrids' wings these were HUGE. He stretched them out and had an amazing wingspan. Now he could soar into the skies faster than any bird kid and drop down on them like a hawk on a flying blond curly-haired wretched mouse. He wanted to leave right away. He tried flapping them a little harder, but they hurt so violently he stopped and tried to rub them.

"You might want to relax a little before using your wings," Jeb advised. "You will get Max, but not if you lose mobility of your wings. Here."

Ari laid back down and his wings relaxed, drooping over the edges of the table. He sighed with relief when Jeb dropped a big ice block on the base of his wings. He already felt wanted and he hadn't done anything.

"Listen carefully," Jeb said. Like a pep talk. "Maximum Ride and the flock are going to Pennsylvania by New Jersy and Delaware. They will be there in about two hours. I need you to meet them there. All the erasers will be in your command and I am counting on you."


	3. Chapter 3Win Some, Lose Some

Chapter Three- Win Some, Lose Some

Flying was something that never got boring. Ari was having a great time up in the skies. He could go higher than the clouds and dive bomb at full speed. He was free to do whatever he wanted up here and this was much faster than stupid ground travel. No wonder the bird kids always got away. Not anymore. He could imagine the glimmer of surprise in Max's beautiful eyes when they flew down there to devour their prey. He felt like he was on top of the world now, literally! He couldn't wait to tell AJ all about this adventure. Not only did he have AJ, but he felt wanted to Jeb as well. He felt very happy that Jeb was finally paying attention to him. This was too good to be true. All he needed was a set of wings for Jeb to love him. For the past two hours Jeb was giving him details about the bird kids and their flying skills. Not only that, but Jeb massaged Ari's aching wings and that was practically insane. Now he was off to do his favorite pass time; wailing on the bird kids.

_Drive the bird kids away and don't kill them. This is a fight you can win._

Ari remembered Jeb's words and was determined not to fail.

Six little dots appeared ahead. They were as small as dust specks, but the erasers' huge wings made them grow with every passing moment. They had found their prey.

The bird kids were prepared for what happened next. The erasers folded their wings clumsily and dived for the bird kids. They missed completely, but two of them managed to have Fang and Iggy in a fix. Ari scanned the flock for Max. Her expression was glazed with fury and she flew down at full speed and rammed right into another eraser. She roared with fury and punched it like crazy until it batted her off with one swipe of its furry paw. She back flipped a few times before her wings caught the air and held her up. While she tried to balance herself, Ari dropped down. His furry fist punched right between her wings. He expected that to do more damage, but somehow she was prepared. She whirled around and kicked his right in the chest. He growled deeply and lunged at her. She leaped away lightly and jabbed him anywhere she could. She was so quick in the air he could barely catch her.

"Come here," Max taunted and whistled like she was calling a dog. "Over here!"

Ari's wings flapped hard enough to send him soaring forwards and he raked his claws down her side. She twisted around to the side and punched on the side of the head a few times. He shook out his fur and tried again. She was so quick he could never make contact with her. She flew behind him so he couldn't see her. Ari's huge clutzy wings made him too slow to turn around in time and he suddenly felt a sharp pain at the base of his wings where Max dug in her finger nails. He whined uncontrollably and tried to shake her off. He thrust his wings hard enough for the wind to knock her away. She simply came back again.

The other erasers were doing no better. One was getting severely beat up by Fang. His ears twitched at Fang's words. They were like fridges with wings while the flock was ballet dancers. They were not match for the flock in the air. It hurt to flap his wings from all the tension and Max helped that along. Every eraser had already retreated except him and he couldn't take on all six by himself. He said he wouldn't fail, but he couldn't help this. The flock was closing in on him. His flight was very limply and he clumsily retreated with the other erasers. The flock had won.

"Just keep that still and don't stress it," Jeb instructed one of the injured erasers. "You'll be fine."

Many of the erasers had pretty bad injuries from their raid on the flock. Luckily Jeb knew what to do. Ari felt like a nervous wreck and was chewing his claws down to nubs. He eyed Jeb from where he stood with the other erasers and was just waiting for Jeb to say something. It never came though. He knew the conversation finally came when Jeb ordered all the erasers to leave the room. Maybe he still had a chance. He was the only eraser that wasn't seen to yet.

"According to these injuries, it looks like you failed," Jeb pointed out and seemed very disappointed. "This was such an easy job and you failed. You didn't drive them to Anne's house. That was the plan. They are supposed to go THERE."

Ari nodded with guilt.

"This better not become a regular thing. Maybe it is not your fault after all. Perhaps it has something to do with your new wings."

Jeb immediately grabbed one of Ari's wings and wrenched it away from his body, studying it. He felt through the feathers to its key points while Ari watched uneasily.

"It seems you have a slight injury at the base of your wings. What happened here?"

"Max happened," he admitted guiltily.

He tried not to growl as Jeb's eyes seemed to shine with pride. Even if Max lost the fight she still would have got that same pride filled expression. It was annoying.

"Yes, Max is very special indeed," Jeb went on. "She is better than I ever could of imagined. She has done a great job at raising that flock."

Ari felt Jeb's hands moving down his wings to his back. His thoughts were still thinking about what happened barely two hours ago. He was expecting another ice pack or a relaxing message, but he just felt something prick his back and saw Jeb pull out a needle full of his blood. He felt very betrayed.

"We need new Eraser plans," Jeb said while studying it. "Better flying abilities. You will not fail next time."

So that was it. Jeb no longer had that caring instinct for him anymore, not like he did for Max. Instead of healing him like the other erasers and loving him no matter what, Jeb just talked about how great Max was and then carelessly poked a needle into his body. Jeb didn't love him anymore and he realized that. He moped all the way back to the room and at least knew that AJ would understand this situation. AJ never expected anything of him.

"Hello, AJ," Ari greeted and opened the box. "Why not we go outside so I can tell you what happened today. Then we can play a game."

Ari picked up the leaf AJ was perched on. AJ looked very small. He was bunched up in a little ball so it was very tiny. That was very unusual. Ari stroked its fur to get it to crawl, but it didn't. It barely moved when he touched it. His heart dropped like, well, a flying eraser when he saw how unresponsive AJ was.

"AJ," he whined so his voice was like a whining dog without a family. "What's wrong."

He took AJ off the leaf and he still didn't crawl. AJ was very sick and Ari knew it. He couldn't just sit here while his best friend was going to die. He just couldn't stand that. He knew someone that would know what to do because he had no one else to turn to.

Ari walked back into the lab unit, cradling AJ in his hands. AJ was not looking very good. He just stood in the doorway, not knowing what to say.

"Yes, Ari?" Jeb asked while looking into a microscope.

"I need help." He tried not to whine, but that turned out to be a failure of an attempt.

Jeb sensed Ari's distress and abandoned the microscope. He walked over to Ari and looked at the caterpillar in his hands.

"My friend is sick," Ari explained. "And I don't know what to do."

"It's not sick," Jeb pointed out. "It is ready to turn into a butterfly. It will make a little shelter and stay there for a few weeks. Then it will become a butterfly. It will fly high in the skies."

"My friend would never leave me," Ari said loyally.

"Ari, you don't seem to understand. It's a caterpillar. Once it comes out, it will fly away. It has no connection to you, it's just a worm."

Ari was heartbroken. He couldn't believe what Jeb was telling him. He was about to lose his best friend forever. Jeb's disappointed gaze made him feel even worse until he couldn't take it anymore and sobs formed in his chest. He held a paw to his eyes and dried them off.

"That is pathetic, Ari," Jeb remarked unhelpfully.

Ari could not pull himself together. He cried uncontrollably until Jeb said something very nice.

"I think I know what you need. It is clear you are distracted by loneliness. I know how to fix that."

Ari blinked up at Jeb hopefully and hoped he really meant it.

Ari was not quite sure where Jeb drove him to. Jeb escorted Ari to the entrance of an official looking building. There was a giant sign by the door and this place was called the Homeward Bound Animal Shelter. What was an animal shelter? Ari had no idea. He was very unsure about entering the building, but Jeb insisted on him going in. The moment he came in he was surrounded in air conditioned flower fragrance. He picked up something else too. He could hear the sound of dogs barking and could smell lots of cats and dogs in this particular place.

"Hello," the girl at the counter greeted. She was very nice and welcoming. "Are you looking to adopt a pet today?"

"Yes, we are," Jeb answered.

"We're what?" Ari wondered with confusion.

"Getting you a friend," Jeb replied surely.

After a short conversation, Stacy at the counter seemed more than happy to adopt a pet to them. Ari wasn't sure what adoption really was. He knew how it was used though, as in Jeb ADOPTED the flock when they were smaller. This probably meant the same for the animals here. This seemed okay. This place was crawling with animals that wanted nothing more than to be his friend.

"Our friends are back here," Stacy announced and opened the door. "Well, what are you waiting for? Come on."

Jeb stayed outside while Ari followed Stacy into the room. She seemed blind to his ugly and non-human features and seemed like a good person who wanted what was best for the animals. Inside the room were lots of felines. There were cages, bigger and more friendly than lab cages, containing cats. The first cat that saw them was a tabby with green eyes. It meowed and brushed against the bars of the cage affectionately. Ari was mesmerized.

"This is Katy," Stacy pointed out. "She just got here last week. She was found roaming the streets. She is a very nice cat."

Katy did look pretty nice, but Ari didn't feel the same pull to her as he did for AJ. This wasn't the one. Stacy didn't want to lose her adopter and moved on to the next cat. Same reaction. All of them were very sweet, but he didn't love them the same way he did AJ. They finally reached the last cat in line. They passed by a yellow cat named Captain and a gray kitten named Tennile and a gray and orange tabby named Tiger. (18wanda, burn! :D) They finally reached the kitten on the end of the row.

"This one is Tilly," Stacy said brightly. "She is my favorite one. She has been here for a few days. She is very outgoing and playful and friendly."

Tilly's blue eyes glanced up at them for only a split second before she madly started chasing her own tail. She rolled all over the ground trying to grab it and when she did, she purred and let it go again. She was the most beautiful cat Ari had ever seen. She was white with a black tail, ears, and paws. She was probably about eight months old, nearing full grown. Ari stuck a finger in the cage and tried to pet her through the bars. She looked at the fingers thoughtfully and then playfully bit them. Her tail swished and she challenged him to a game.

That one.


	4. Chapter 4 For the Love of a Cat

Chapter Four- For the Love of a Cat

A cat. This was the resolution to all of Ari's problems. All he needed was a cat. Last time he checked, cats didn't turn into butterflies and fly away like bird kids.

"This is where I live," Ari announced. "We call it the School. Is it nice?"

Tilly didn't pay any attention. She just set to work with biting Ari's fingers like she had been doing since she left the animal shelter. She purred happily and loved her new owner very much. Ari was more than delighted. Instead of mindlessly crawling around, Tilly actually knew he existed. She would live as long as he did probably so there were no more problems. They would be the best of friends.

The other erasers didn't know what to think when they saw Ari enter the hallway carrying a furry little bundle of black and white. They looked with curiosity. They didn't say anything about it except the jerk eraser Ari tussled with yesterday.

"What is THAT?" he growled as Tilly's sleepy blue eyes blinked open.

Ari glared at the eraser so coldly that it just backed up slowly and didn't say anything more about the cat. Ari was prepared to rip out the throats of any dog that bullied his cat. Tilly meant more than gold. They finally entered the room where it looked more normal instead of like a cold lab. He put her on the floor and closed the door. She sniffed the air and then pounced on a pen cap. She killed it and moved on to her next victim, a paper wad. She rolled over and kicked at it with her back paws until it looked like confetti. Ari was so light hearted that he started a game with her. He turned into an eraser and growled playfully at her. He jabbed her with a furry paw and knocked her down. Tilly shot up and pounced on his head, biting madly. Her tail lashed and she knew she could win this tussle. Ari rolled on the ground and let her win. She was definitely not like other cats. Instead of being afraid of dogs, she played with them. When she got tired, she crawled right into the center of his bed and curled in a little ball, shutting her eyes tightly. Ari jumped on the bed with her. She reached out with her black paws and hugged his arm. Ari stared at her.

And stared.

And stared some more. Tilly peaked open her eye with annoyance.

"I have to watch you very closely," Ari explained. "If I don't watch, something bad will happen like what happened to AJ. I can't let you out of my sight. Not now, not EVER."

And Tilly didn't seem to care.

The same three erasers from yesterday opened the door and saw Ari shredding a paper ball into confetti while a shark-cat demolished his head.

"Alright, do we even want to know?" the aggressive eraser from yesterday asked and raised an eyebrow.

"We're playing a game," Ari answered happily and then his voice turned into a low growl. "You want to make something of it?"

"No, we have to go attack the bird kids right now. Come on."

Bird kids. Nothing would make this day better than attacking that freakin' flock a second time. This time he would not fail. Tilly was his inspiration for everything. He got up and was about to follow the others out the door when he heard of pitiful sound when he closed the door.

"Meow…Meow…Meow!"

Then there was the sound of Tilly scratching on the door and yowling. Ari gasped with horror and opened the door. The moment he did Tilly flew out the door. He scooped her up and held her close. He would do anything to make it up to her. He couldn't BELIEVE he almost left her alone after he promised not to.

"Hurry up before the whitecoats retire all of us," the other eraser said annoyed. "The cat will be fine."

"No, I will never leave Tilly alone," he vowed loyally. "So we will have to take her with us."

"Pardon?"

The erasers went outside and unfurled their huge wings for flight.

"You can't attack bird kids with a cat."

That didn't matter. Ari just wanted to keep Tilly safe from danger. The other two erasers took off and Ari followed them. With a huge heave of his wings, he took off. They weren't twenty feet off the ground before Tilly tensed up with fear, staring at the ground wildly. Ari held her by the scruff of her neck to calm her down. She was frozen with fright so Ari landed. The other erasers couldn't leave without Ari so they banked down too.

"Put it back," the other eraser ordered. "This will never work."

"I am NOT leaving Tilly," Ari insisted. "We will make it, Tilly. Come on now."

Tilly ripped at his shirt sleeve. That could mean anything, but she seemed ready for flight. They tried it again. Poor Tilly was paralyzed with fear. She put up with it for about five minutes before she started yowling and scatching up Ari's arms so he looked like a kindergarten drawing. Ari flew lower and lower until he was almost at tree level. Tilly couldn't take the shock anymore. She squirmed so violently that Ari lost grip of her and she fell.

Ari couldn't believe this was happening. She fell down into the town below. Luckily no one was around. He tried to bank down and catch her, but he wasn't sure how to turn these giant clutzy wings. By the time he landed, Tilly was nowhere to be found.

"Tilly!" Ari called desperately.

"There's no time for that," that one eraser I keep mentioning pointed out. "We need to get those bird kids now."

"NO! No one leaves until we find Tilly."

The erasers had nothing else to do besides look for Ari's cat. There were so many things to look under that they all army crawled on the ground and checked under cars, mobile homes, trash cans, and in boxes. A jogger that was coming by saw all the "normal citizens" crawling on the ground and jogged up to Ari.

"Did you lose something?" she asked.

"ARRGH!"

Ari picked up the innocent jogger and tossed the annoying thing like a football. Then he continued searching for Tilly.

Wait a minute. What was that thing perched on that wooden fence? He looked closely and saw a white and black thing with a black tail draping over the edge. The cat was grooming her paws unharmed. Tilly! Ari ran up to her like a romantic movie scene on the beach with doves and a sunset. He saw a pebble strike the fence barely an inch from where Tilly was perched. She jumped up wildly and her fur spiked up. Ari saw two stupid gangster kids on the roof of their porch monkey house and throwing stones at Tilly. That was too far. Before he sprouted fur, he barely dodged another stone.

"Aw, lose your cat," they taunted. "You can't get us up here!"

Their eyes almost popped out of their heads when a wolf appeared right in front of their eyes and huge wings spiked from his back. Ari growled viciously and leaped on to the roof of the building without a problem. He flared his wings and knocked them both down with wind. Then he loped right to them and clawed them until they looked like ribbons on the outside. One lost balance and fell off the roof. The seconds one was going to jump willingly and Ari just helped the retard along with a swipe of his paw. Did they die? Did they not die? That didn't matter. Tilly was safe.

"Okay, the freakin' cat is fine," one of the erasers growled. "Now what about the bird kids."

Ari embraced Tilly in an everlasting hug. "Forget the bird kids. I am taking Tilly home. I don't care what they do to me as long as my kitty is safe."

Tilly meowed with approval and bit Ari's paw.


	5. Chapter 5Max, my Dear

Chapter Five- Max, my Dear

More time passed and Tilly and Ari remained the best of friends. About two months passed and not once did Ari ever feel lonely. Two months passed and things were going great.

It was the middle of the night and the two of them were fast asleep. Tilly was having a wonderful dream about killing a whole room of mice and rats as fast as she could. Ari was dreaming about something else though. He was walking somewhere but didn't know where. It was a place far away from the School and far away from civilization. He knew where he was going, but wasn't sure why he was so happy to get there. He reached a huge door underground and opened the heavy door. He leaped inside swiftly and then closed it.

"I was waiting for you, friend," a sweet blond bird kid said gratefully. "I wasn't sure where you were."

"I'm here now, MAX," he answered.

Max ran up to him like a loyal dog and looked at him hopefully. They were best friends. Ari came to her every day and she loved to play. Ari was so happy and excited. He smiled and felt like a marshmallow when Max grabbed his arm and hugged it. Without hesitation, he hugged her back.

"We could play football outside," Ari suggested.

"Great idea! You're a genius!"

The two of them went outside in the fresh air. Both of them were very happy and couldn't think of a better way to pass the time then play football. Ari grabbed to football and took off into the air. Max unfurled her wings and flew after. She had to flap really fast, but she managed to catch him and they both tumbled to the ground with her on top. She snatched the football and took off. Ari was about to go after her when Max was gone. All of a sudden she appeared right in front of him so fast that he fell over backwards, staring at her with wild eyes.

"Keep dreaming, DOG," Max yelled her usual sassy way. Ari was positive she almost punched him, but he woke up to fast to be sure.

What? He glanced at the room frantically and he knew it was only a dream. None of it was real. Max was not his best friend. No, she only cared about her stupid flock. Of course. Ari could still feel the joy he felt when Max hugged him and when they played football together. It was like how he felt for Tilly, but much stronger. He wanted the dream to be real more than anything else in the whole world.

"Tilly," he moaned sleepily and stroked her back. Tilly opened her eyes and stretched out. "Tilly, do you want to go out?"

"Meow," she answered and stretched like an accordion.

Tilly pounced off the bed and waited at the door. It was maybe four in the morning because the sky was still dark out. The School was silent as they trudged around. Tilly was on a mouse hunt and Ari just day dreamed, (or would it be considered night dreamed), about playing with Max again. Then Ari heard the sound of footsteps and looked up suddenly. He turned around the corner and then saw a little person stop when she was intercepted. Her eyes were pools of brown and her hair was blond and curly. She looked exactly like she did in that dream last night. How could this be? This was no dream. Max was right here in the School.

"Like hey, what the heck are you doing in MY way?" she ordered assertively.

Yep, this was Max alright. What was the precious little princess doing here? If the School did catch her, wouldn't she be more… confined?"

"I'm looking for someone named Arny," she said coolly and flipped her hair back.

"I'm Ari," he answered quickly. "Do you want to play football?"

"What? Hey, I don't know what the-"

"Maximum Ride, I see you have met Ari," a whitecoat said and came up behind her. She seemed perfectly okay with that. "Ari, this is Max II."

"You mean… she is not Maximum Ride?"

"Oh, but I am," Max II replied confidently. "Now, I guess I need to know about Max now. That's where you come in, Aang."

"Ari."

"Whatever. I need to be as much like Max as possible. We have to forcibly hang out together so, bring it on."

This wasn't a dream, but it seemed like one. A copy of Max just appears out of nowhere and has no one to hang out with. Hello.

"See that one right there? That one is Max."

Max II yawned with boredom. "I know who that is, Scaby."

"ARI!"

Ari surrendered the binoculars to Max II. She snatched them and looked into the window of Anne's house. Max and the flock were doing their little fist stacking thing before Iggy jumped up to start cooking. What on earth were the flock doing up at like six in the morning. In their perfect lives, they had nothing to wake up for. Well, he forgot they had to go to School. It would be fun to spy on them there. From the top of the pine tree, Ari wanted to fly away as fast as he could or just punch Max II in the face. Or both. She was so infuriating and this was not going as planned. She was so stubborn and could not remember his own name. Scaby? Was that even a word? She was MEAN, like keeping a coon for a pet. He would gladly beat her up, but one thing held him back. He knew that Jeb hated this Max II and couldn't stand to be around her. Since Jeb apparently was the same around Ari, he stuck to Max II like an AJ to a leaf. She didn't mind hanging out with him as long as they were doing something important like spying on Max. As long as this aggravated Jeb, it was worth it.

A date, huh? Since when did Maximum Ride date? Ari and Max II watched the whole thing like a movie and followed them silently through the night until they reached Max's house.

"I think Max is moving in," Max II informed him and had the binoculars pressed to her face. "Yeah, I will have to remember that. Note to self: Pretend to be normal when you're not."

"Can we go back to School now?" Ari asked boredly. Max II took over the whole mission now so he was just a tagalong. (Like those look awesome at Dairy Queen, right? Thin mints!)

"Wait a minute," Max II growled. "Max is talking to Angy."

"Angel," Ari corrected for like the millionth person.

"They're saying something… Oh… Oh my goodness! Wow!"

Ari perked up and tried to listen now that Max II put on a scene. It was too late. Angel crawled into bed and Max tucked her in and they finished talking. Max II lowered the binoculars and looked at Ari in a strange way, smiling like she knew something huge. She just stared before she burst out laughing.

"What?"

Max II was about to explain, but she started off again, grabbing the tree for support. Ari waited impatiently and rolled his eyes.

"Okay, I'm done," Max II said and then, of course, laughed some more. "Ada said something hilarious. How does she know this stuff?"

"About me?" Ari guessed. "What? If they still think I'm a fridge with wings then I'm really gonna-"

"Andy, you love Max!" she giggled. "You WHAT? HA!"

Why did freakin' Angel have to read minds?

"I thought you looked tense during that date," she went on.

"It's not like that," Ari explained and then trailed off when Max II just cut him off again with stupid little imitations.

"OKAY, I GET IT!"

Ari flared out his wings and took off into the sky. Max II stayed behind to watch Max some more. Finally he was away from that mean Max II that only cared about bullying everyone. What a friend. She just wasn't the real Max.

Wait a minute. The sun was coming up on another brilliant idea. What if the real Max was his friend? She would be nice and play games just like the dream. It had to be an omen. If he wanted Max, he would have to take her by force. He would abduct her and take her somewhere she couldn't fly away until she grew to like him. They would never have to worry about anything ever again. No School, no whitecoats, no worries. They would be the best of friends and it was too good to be true. To everyone else, Max wouldn't exist. It would just be the two of them.


	6. Chapter 6Best Friends Fornever

Chapter Seven- Taming the Wild Coon

"You are really stupid, you know that?" yelled Max. "FREAKIN' retarded dog! Let me out of here or I will rip out your spine and smack you with it. I'll stuff my bed with your fur. Yeah, you messed with the Max man now."

Ari made sure the door was closed to the underground room before opening the bag. He reached in quickly and snagged her by the wings. He winced about a million times as Max thrashed and tried to bite him again. He had plenty of experience with Tilly so this was no big deal. He pressed her to the ground and shoved all his weight on her so she was pressed like a bug.

"What are we doing in this place?" Max demanded. "I better know or I will personally rip out your-"

"Downstairs," Ari interrupted. "Here you will be safe from the whitecoats and the School. It will be just the two of us forever."

"I would rather be taken to the School, THANK YOU," Max snarled.

Ari grabbed her wings and then she went off again, trashing her wings like crazy. Ari quickly pulled them together and then pulled out a plastic tie. He carefully wrapped it around both of her wings and then zipped it together. Max was so stressed out that she was breathing really hard and her heartbeat was even faster than normal. Ari let her go and she jumped up suddenly, trying to flap her wings. The zip tie would not loosen and her wings were stuck together. She reached around and tried to undo it, but couldn't do it. Ari just watched with anticipation until Max finally gave up panting. Now, about their friendship…

"You are going to be here for a while," Ari said nicely. "So I guess you should know that I am the only living thing keeping you alive. I brought some stuff for us to do."

"I don't get you!" Max screamed. "Geez, no wonder you don't have any friends! Kidnapping me is the only way for you to get a friend, huh? Pathetic. Why didn't you just kidnap something else besides me. Oh, I know. It's because you LOVE me. I have never batted my eyelashes at you."

"No, I just wanted you to like me," Ari answered innocently. "So now you have to be my friend since you ignored me all those years."

"How could I EVER forgive you for what you have done to me and my flock. You're just…AWFUL!"

"We'll see about that."

Ari already had a box of things for them to do together down here. He rummaged through the box and thought about how much he would love to hear a story. He didn't like to read, but maybe Max could. He found the very hungry caterpillar and brought it to Max. He held it out for her to take. She gave him a queer expression and took the book. She leafed through it and turned to the first page. She was actually going to read to him! He was charmed and eagerly waited for Max to begin.

"Once upon a time their lived a very stupid eraser who didn't see this coming."

Then Max slammed the book closed and threw it right at Ari's head. Ouch. Ari saw stars surrounding a very proud looking Max. Okay, so Max didn't want to read. He had lots of other plans.

Two minutes later…

"OOPS, I dropped it," Max said sarcastically.

Ari stared at the Gameboy on the ground with horror. He retrieved it and quickly tapped the on button. The screen lit up and it was still okay. He tried to let Max watch him play, but she purposely slammed it to the ground.

Another Minute Later…

"It's much more fun to play football this way," Max pointed out. "See, when you have the football I just tackle you like this…" Max pounced on top of Ari and took the football. "And then you just beat the potatoes out of you like THIS!"

Max punched and kicked like there was no tomorrow. Ari jumped up and threw Max off. Her wings flittered and she instinctively tried to fly, but she couldn't. Max wouldn't play that either.

Two minutes later…

"King me!"

Max threw her little checkers piece at Ari's head. He sighed and gave her a King piece. She slammed it on the board. He was losing terribly. In his head, Max was supposed to be showing him how to play but she only got joy at throwing things, including herself, at him. She was wilder than Tilly after a nap. She was about to throw another one when Ari stood up suddenly and the pieces slammed off their places.

"Forget it, Max! That's enough games for today. Just stay here! I will be back later. You will like me."

"Imagination is a wonderful thing, Ari," Max said just before Ari slammed the door on her.

"RETARD!!!" Max screamed one last time and hoped Ari heard that.

Max couldn't believe this. She collapsed on the ground, clutching her temples. She was living a normal life and then Ari literally barged in and took it all away. Now she was trapped in this little room. This was a mansion compared to a dog crate in the School, but the worse part of it was that she had to depend on Ari. If he wanted to, he could starve her and she had no saying in it. Ari was a sick and twisted eraser. There was no way she would ever be friends with him and she was leaving right away. How to escape though? The zip tie around her wings was too tight and she couldn't reach back there to undo it. How could she get out?

_Ari isn't that smart,_ the voice reminded her._ This room is underground._

The Voice could always be a little more specific, but it left her thinking. If this room was underground, there wouldn't be air down here. Something was letting air in and it meant her way out. She scanned the room and searched. There! It was pretty high up on the ceiling, but she could get there. She was way smarter than Ari. There were bars over it and she felt the cool air coming down from here.

Max went over to Ari's toy chest and started scooting it to make a ladder to the vent.

"Double and triple stack 'em," a lonely Max murmered to herself. "Then watch your family attack them."

Max climbed up her little stack and then reached the vent. The cold air blew out and she squinted her eyes to see. She gripped the bars on the vent and they weren't tougher than a bird kid that had a rough day. She yanked on the two bars her hands were on and they bent like Bendaroos. Swiftly she jumped inside and left Ari's prison cell. She was on her way back to the flock. It wasn't safe here anymore.

Tilly was in a bad mood. This wasn't her average bad mood, she was furious. She already shredded a few of Ari's possessions to make her feel better, but she was still angry. Ari used to be her world and now he was gone. He left her in the School and he never came back. Ari was distracted with something that wasn't her and she was very jealous. Well, if Ari was going to ignore her, she wasn't going to stay. Good thing Ari trusted her enough to put in a cat door. Tilly sharpened her claws on the bed post and then walked out the door with her tail held high. If Ari really wanted her back, he would have to go get her.

Later that day Ari was thinking about Max and thought he would pay her a visit. She was probably getting lonely about now. Certainly she would of changed her mind by now and she would gladly greet him with a hug. The thought was so precious that he decided to go play with her immediately. Ari brought a present along with him. Before he opened the door he checked inside the picnic basket he brought and made sure their sandwiches were still there. They were perfectly organized and the two of them could have a picnic. How could Max could turn down food?

Ari opened the door, jumped inside, and closed it before Max could get out. He scanned the room and shook the basket like he would shake Tilly's cat treats. Max didn't come out.

"Max, I know you're hungry," he called. "We can play hide and seek later, okay? Max?"

Ari panicked and frantically started searching the room. He checked behind everything and then saw the giant stack of things in the back of the room. It led all the way up to a vent where the bars were bent. A Max-sized hole was all that was left. Max had escaped and Ari knew he had to find her fast.


	7. Chapter 7Taming the Wild Coon

Chapter Seven- Taming the Wild Coon

"You are really stupid, you know that?" yelled Max. "FREAKIN' retarded dog! Let me out of here or I will rip out your spine and smack you with it. I'll stuff my bed with your fur. Yeah, you messed with the Max man now."

Ari made sure the door was closed to the underground room before opening the bag. He reached in quickly and snagged her by the wings. He winced about a million times as Max thrashed and tried to bite him again. He had plenty of experience with Tilly so this was no big deal. He pressed her to the ground and shoved all his weight on her so she was pressed like a bug.

"What are we doing in this place?" Max demanded. "I better know or I will personally rip out your-"

"Downstairs," Ari interrupted. "Here you will be safe from the whitecoats and the School. It will be just the two of us forever."

"I would rather be taken to the School, THANK YOU," Max snarled.

Ari grabbed her wings and then she went off again, trashing her wings like crazy. Ari quickly pulled them together and then pulled out a plastic tie. He carefully wrapped it around both of her wings and then zipped it together. Max was so stressed out that she was breathing really hard and her heartbeat was even faster than normal. Ari let her go and she jumped up suddenly, trying to flap her wings. The zip tie would not loosen and her wings were stuck together. She reached around and tried to undo it, but couldn't do it. Ari just watched with anticipation until Max finally gave up panting. Now, about their friendship…

"You are going to be here for a while," Ari said nicely. "So I guess you should know that I am the only living thing keeping you alive. I brought some stuff for us to do."

"I don't get you!" Max screamed. "Geez, no wonder you don't have any friends! Kidnapping me is the only way for you to get a friend, huh? Pathetic. Why didn't you just kidnap something else besides me. Oh, I know. It's because you LOVE me. I have never batted my eyelashes at you."

"No, I just wanted you to like me," Ari answered innocently. "So now you have to be my friend since you ignored me all those years."

"How could I EVER forgive you for what you have done to me and my flock. You're just…AWFUL!"

"We'll see about that."

Ari already had a box of things for them to do together down here. He rummaged through the box and thought about how much he would love to hear a story. He didn't like to read, but maybe Max could. He found the very hungry caterpillar and brought it to Max. He held it out for her to take. She gave him a queer expression and took the book. She leafed through it and turned to the first page. She was actually going to read to him! He was charmed and eagerly waited for Max to begin.

"Once upon a time their lived a very stupid eraser who didn't see this coming."

Then Max slammed the book closed and threw it right at Ari's head. Ouch. Ari saw stars surrounding a very proud looking Max. Okay, so Max didn't want to read. He had lots of other plans.

Two minutes later…

"OOPS, I dropped it," Max said sarcastically.

Ari stared at the Gameboy on the ground with horror. He retrieved it and quickly tapped the on button. The screen lit up and it was still okay. He tried to let Max watch him play, but she purposely slammed it to the ground.

Another Minute Later…

"It's much more fun to play football this way," Max pointed out. "See, when you have the football I just tackle you like this…" Max pounced on top of Ari and took the football. "And then you just beat the potatoes out of you like THIS!"

Max punched and kicked like there was no tomorrow. Ari jumped up and threw Max off. Her wings flittered and she instinctively tried to fly, but she couldn't. Max wouldn't play that either.

Two minutes later…

"King me!"

Max threw her little checkers piece at Ari's head. He sighed and gave her a King piece. She slammed it on the board. He was losing terribly. In his head, Max was supposed to be showing him how to play but she only got joy at throwing things, including herself, at him. She was wilder than Tilly after a nap. She was about to throw another one when Ari stood up suddenly and the pieces slammed off their places.

"Forget it, Max! That's enough games for today. Just stay here! I will be back later. You will like me."

"Imagination is a wonderful thing, Ari," Max said just before Ari slammed the door on her.

"RETARD!!!" Max screamed one last time and hoped Ari heard that.

Max couldn't believe this. She collapsed on the ground, clutching her temples. She was living a normal life and then Ari literally barged in and took it all away. Now she was trapped in this little room. This was a mansion compared to a dog crate in the School, but the worse part of it was that she had to depend on Ari. If he wanted to, he could starve her and she had no saying in it. Ari was a sick and twisted eraser. There was no way she would ever be friends with him and she was leaving right away. How to escape though? The zip tie around her wings was too tight and she couldn't reach back there to undo it. How could she get out?

_Ari isn't that smart,_ the voice reminded her._ This room is underground._

The Voice could always be a little more specific, but it left her thinking. If this room was underground, there wouldn't be air down here. Something was letting air in and it meant her way out. She scanned the room and searched. There! It was pretty high up on the ceiling, but she could get there. She was way smarter than Ari. There were bars over it and she felt the cool air coming down from here.

Max went over to Ari's toy chest and started scooting it to make a ladder to the vent.

"Double and triple stack 'em," a lonely Max murmered to herself. "Then watch your family attack them."

Max climbed up her little stack and then reached the vent. The cold air blew out and she squinted her eyes to see. She gripped the bars on the vent and they weren't tougher than a bird kid that had a rough day. She yanked on the two bars her hands were on and they bent like Bendaroos. Swiftly she jumped inside and left Ari's prison cell. She was on her way back to the flock. It wasn't safe here anymore.

Tilly was in a bad mood. This wasn't her average bad mood, she was furious. She already shredded a few of Ari's possessions to make her feel better, but she was still angry. Ari used to be her world and now he was gone. He left her in the School and he never came back. Ari was distracted with something that wasn't her and she was very jealous. Well, if Ari was going to ignore her, she wasn't going to stay. Good thing Ari trusted her enough to put in a cat door. Tilly sharpened her claws on the bed post and then walked out the door with her tail held high. If Ari really wanted her back, he would have to go get her.

Later that day Ari was thinking about Max and thought he would pay her a visit. She was probably getting lonely about now. Certainly she would of changed her mind by now and she would gladly greet him with a hug. The thought was so precious that he decided to go play with her immediately. Ari brought a present along with him. Before he opened the door he checked inside the picnic basket he brought and made sure their sandwiches were still there. They were perfectly organized and the two of them could have a picnic. How could Max could turn down food?

Ari opened the door, jumped inside, and closed it before Max could get out. He scanned the room and shook the basket like he would shake Tilly's cat treats. Max didn't come out.

"Max, I know you're hungry," he called. "We can play hide and seek later, okay? Max?"

Ari panicked and frantically started searching the room. He checked behind everything and then saw the giant stack of things in the back of the room. It led all the way up to a vent where the bars were bent. A Max-sized hole was all that was left. Max had escaped and Ari knew he had to find her fast.


	8. Chapter 8 Loves and Losses

Chapter Eight- Loves and Losses

Max wondered into town, her eyes peeled for humans. She didn't see anybody in this town, it wasn't that pleasant. It was just deserted. She walked along and did a 360. Since Ari tied up her wings, she couldn't fold them and hide them. She had one thing on her mind. She had to get as far away from the stupid eraser and the School as fast as she could. Without wings, she needed to drive a car. She searched around until she found a huge van parked on the side of the street. That would work. Max studied the van and it seemed okay. After a few minutes, Max got it up and running and she was on her way.

What did it take to get a decent car with a GPS these days? Max had no idea where she was. Ari flew her in that little burlap sack for over and she didn't know how long she was in there. Her brain was so full of worries she couldn't think straight. All she cared about was getting back to the flock? What if this was all a set up and the School napped them too? They could be anywhere and she would not know where they were. Maybe she would have to break into the School and free them.

_Focus on what you're doing_, the voice reminded her.

_Shut up, okay? The least you can do is tell me how to get home or if my friends are safe. Gee, stop being so mysterious._

And she ignored it. She had too much to worry about and had to think of a plan. This would be so much easier if her wings were free. She looked up into the sky to make sure there were no erasers following her from the sky. She was safe so far. She guessed that Anne's house was south. She made a mental note to turn around as soon as possible. Her eyes were always on the sky just in case of sudden erasers.

All of a sudden the car bumped and threw Max up against her seat buckle. CRAP! A blown tire! How could this get ANY worse?

"Maybe there is a spare around back," Max guessed.

She got out of the car and went around to the back. She opened the back of the van and noticed something. All four tires were blown up and fine. Max blinked with confusion and then her vision trailed down the road where she just went. Something was laying in the road. Max gasped with horror and ran over to it as fast as she could. A little cat was laying motionless in the road: a kitten that was white with black paws, ears, and tail. The kitten's blue eyes were staring at nothing and Max knew what she had just done. She felt so guilty. The voice told her to watch where she was going and she ignored it. The cat paid for her mistake. Her eyes stinged with tears and she reached out to touch the cat. She picked it up and cradled it in her arms. It was still warm, but not alive. Max could only stare down at this cat with guilt.

"At least you didn't feel anything," she said even though the cat was too far gone to hear it.

Max wasn't sure how long she stayed in that moment. It could have been a few minutes or a million years. She clutched the kitten closely and cried into its soft fur. So now this happened. She didn't know how it could get worse. Then a huge shadow fell on top of her. Max looked up suddenly to see that it just did. An eraser with ridiculously large wings angled down to where she was standing.

Ari.

Max didn't get far with her wings tied. Ari felt satisfaction when he found Max just standing on the street and doing nothing. She was so helpless without the help of her wings. He landed on the ground and began to morph into an eraser. He knew Max wouldn't go back without a fight. He prepared for an insult or two but Max just barely looked up. When she did, her gaze looked like she was shattered in a million pieces. She hated him that much? What was her deal?

"You need to come back with me," Ari growled. "I am not losing you this easily."

"Ari," she said and her voice cracked with grief.

"I made a nice little picnic for us-"

"Ari," she repeated.

Ari stopped talking and listened to her. She was holding something deeply in her hoodie that he did not notice before. She turned to face him and he saw exactly what she was holding so closely. All he could do was stare. Tilly was laying in Max's arms very still and she was staring at nothing. Ari came a little closer. Max didn't know anything about this cat. She expected Ari to swat it out of her hands and capture her again. She tensed up and prepared to run. Ari's eyes were fixed on Tilly and he took her from Max's hands. He felt like he was going to throw up when he felt how cold and stiff she was.

"Tilly," he whined. "Tilly."

Tilly didn't move. Ari felt like part of him just died along with Tilly. He was blind to everything else around him and it was just the two of them. Ari had never been so sad in his whole life.

"This is your cat?" asked Max quietly, dreading the answer.

Ari nodded and then Max noticed his shoulders shaking violently. She had never seen Ari cry before. This was not just any street cat she killed, but Ari's best friend. The sight of Ari trying to get Tilly to magically wake up was too much to bear and she started to cry too. Enemy or not, she just shattered Ari's life and she could never forgive herself for that.

Ari had to live with the fact that friendship was a waste of time. Loving something with every aspect of his being just ended up in heartbreak. Something bad would happen and then the terrible depression and pain that followed was worse than loving at all. He promised he would never let anything bad happen to Tilly and he let it happen anyway. If only Tilly could know right now how sorry he was for neglecting her. He didn't deserve friends.

All of a sudden he felt something grab is arm. He glanced up and saw Max. She held his arm tightly and they stared into each other's guilt and heartbreak. Ari didn't care if Max punched him in the face now. He had nothing to lose. Instead of punching Ari, she pulled him closer and then hugged him. Ari felt so much happiness in that moment it almost made his pain go away. This showed that Max cared. She held him close to her until he stopped crying and so did she. Max took a few steps back and looked down at Tilly again.

"Friendship is not a bad thing," she said, like she knew that was exactly on Ari's mind. She did. "Kindness is what gets you friends. My flock could die every day, but I don't worry about the pain I will feel when I lose them. I will love and protect them as long as I live. I will not ever abandon them."

She was right. It made Ari realize something. He was not doing the right thing and he had to make it better.

"Turn around," Ari pleaded Max.

"Why?" she asked for her own safety.

She didn't need an answer. She trusted Ari enough that moment to do so. Ari's fangs grew back to wolf fangs and he snapped down on the zip tie. It snapped like a twig and Max's wings unfurled to their full 14 foot wingspan. She flew a couple feet in the air and prepared to take off. Ari just ruined his whole plan probably forever, but he realized then that he would rather die than betray anyone else. Max's brown eyes showed just how grateful she was. Ari waved to her good-bye.

"By the way," Max said in farewell. "I love you too."


	9. Chapter 9Me and my AJ

Chapter Nine- Me and My AJ

Meanwhile, the other erasers were bored. They had absolutely nothing to do. The three erasers that always palled around with Ari had nothing. They just stood around in the hallway with nothing to do. They missed their leader. Life was boring without Ari to throw them around and beat them up without mercy. They also missed hurling insults at each other and the three of them missed ratting on Ari about AJ.

"So…" the same eraser that attacked Ari said to the others. "What should we do?"

"We can try to catch the bird kids," one of them suggested. "Well… it wouldn't be much fun without Ari. I miss him."

"We can try to find Ari," decided the temporary leader. "I think Ari is outside. Let's go."

Their friendship was VERY rocky, but the three erasers were that desperate. The three of them left the School in search of their pack leader. They knew where he would be though: the same place he was for all yesterday and now today. They went across the rolling field away from the School and to the old tree that stood there, growing on its own. They loped to the tree and slowed down when they got closer. They approached quietly and cautiously. By the grave of his beloved cat was Ari. Ari was laying down in front of the dirt patch and staring at it with misery. Ari had been doing that for almost a whole day. When the erasers came by earlier he cruelly chased them off so they approached one step at a time. Ari didn't respond when they came closer. The other two stayed back while the lead eraser came close enough to see why Ari wasn't responding. Ari's eyes were closed and he was asleep.

The erasers were glad that their leader was getting a little better. They didn't say anything and just communicated through stares. The lead eraser dropped down next to Ari and enjoyed the rays of the evening sun. The other two had nothing else to do so they laid down too and joined Ari for an evening nap.

Ari woke up surprised to see the other erasers were sleeping around Tilly's grave too. What were they doing? How long had they been there? It felt nice knowing they cared enough to come. Ari didn't disturb them and left peacefully. He was pretty sure it had been over a day since he came here. He almost feinted from hunger and thirst and realized it had been a while, a very long while, since he tended those needs. What was the point without Tilly though? What was life?

Max. She was the only thought that comforted him in a way. He wondered mindlessly back to the School replaying the scene in his head over and over again of her hugging him. Ari barely noticed when he reached the room. A new wave of sadness and depression filled the air when he saw no Tilly sleeping there and clawing at his eyes every time he wanted the bed. Tilly was not racing across the room to bite at his ankles or purr for cat treats. She was nothing but a memory now like AJ. For two months the little bug cage had been sitting there without being touched. The leaves of food for AJ had long past dried up and spiders were building webs around the cage. Ari decided to take a trip down memory lane and picked up the cage for the first time in two months.

Wait a minute. What was that? Something was clutching the wires of the cage on the inside. Next to a split cocoon was a beautiful butterfly. AJ? Yes, it was! Its wings were crumpled and still drying after that long transformation.

"AJ." Ari was charmed. "You did come back."

Ari Junior had beautiful wings that needed to be free and fly in the sky. Ari knew that AJ could not stay with him. He would be much happier if he was free like Max and the flock. Friendship always paid off. Ari closed the bug box and clutched it close before leaving. Right now AJ was still his beloved pet and this moment would disappear just like his other friends in just a few minutes. He trailed along down the halls of the School slowly, thinking about the short and happy times they shared together. Finally they took the elevator down to the bottom floor and were almost out.

"Ari."

Ari searched around and then saw Jeb standing there, holding a chipboard and writing stuff down. Oh great.

"The other three erasers have been waiting for you," he explained without looking up. "We need to test some new changes on them."

"Great," Ari answered sarcastically. "I couldn't think of a better way to spend my time than to attack my new… _friends_."

"Ari, enough wasting our time. We need to handle these bird kids. They will not survive if erasers don't attack them; Keep them in shape."

Let AJ go or rip the heads off of erasers… Option one won by a lot. Jeb was a puny human that couldn't tell him what to do. Ari growled with refusal and headed off without Jeb. His wings were starting to unfurl and get ready to fly when Jeb caught up to him.

"I said I'm not going," he growled again, more fierce and aggravated.

"I just thought I would come with you," Jeb said with a shrug. "You look lonely."

What, another joke? Ari blinked with confusion and had to make sure this was not an illusion. No, that was really a Jeb saying that.

What, no voice? No voice of wisdom to say something? Ari decided just to roll with it. This was what he wanted after all. Jeb knew the way to the tree where Tilly was and led the way there. Ari followed like a loyal puppy.

The other erasers woke up with the sound of Jeb and Ari approaching the tree. They jumped up suddenly and turned into wolves, wondering exactly what a whitecoat was doing here. They acted as if they were caught doing a terrible crime and slinked off in the direction of the School. Ari began to wonder why he ever attacked them. They were too far gone to stop now. They were just little loping dots on the horizon now.

The butterfly captive flapped its wings and looked out at the setting sun with wonder. Ari thought about this for one more moment before he opened the lid of the bug box. AJ perched on the edge of the box for a second that seemed like a lifetime before taking off into the sky. AJ's wings flapped determinedly and he disappeared into the setting sun.

"Friendship is not a bad thing," Jeb said, Max's exact words. Strange… "Now we should get those tests done, shall we?"

"Sure," Ari agreed. "Just… one more thing."

Ari retreated a safe distance from Jeb and spread out his wings. He flapped them rapidly until he sailed off into the sky. This was the first time Ari flew since he went looking for Max after she left. Before he could fight erasers at the School, there was something he had to do.

Ari flew over this field a few days ago and remembered where it was. In the bright moonlight, he could see the flowers from here. They were moon lilies. They were as silver as the full moon and looked like carnations. They were the most beautiful flowers ever and Ari picked as many as he could carry. He returned to Tilly's grave and bordered it with flowers. Before placing each one down, he took out the seeds and planted them in the ground. The flowers were as bright as angels, like Tilly.


End file.
